Give us this day our political bread

I’m Just Sayin’

by SHEILA SMITH

If you and I have one thing in common, it might be that we are tired of hearing about Chick-fil-A supporting “the Biblical definition of the family unit,” meaning one man and one woman. Company president and chief operating officer Dan Cathy recently made the comment to Baptist Press, the official publication of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC).

Once he did that, America lost its mind. Those supporting traditional marriage danced in the streets at the sound of Cathy’s words. Those supporting same sex marriages began boycotting Chick-fil-A, vowing to never have another delicious waffle fry.

The issue is sort of a repeat of June’s rainbow-colored Oreo fiasco. June is recognized as National Gay Pride Month, so Oreo acknowledged the event on its Web site with a picture of an Oreo filled with rainbow-colored cream. Those supporting same sex marriages danced in the streets at the sight of the Oreo. Those supporting traditional marriage began boycotting Oreo, vowing to never have another delicious Oreo.

It is quickly becoming a trend among major companies and smaller businesses to take a stand on the traditional-versus-gay marriage issue. Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos publicly announced his support of gay marriage by donating $2.5 million to Washington United for Marriage, while Microsoft founder Bill Gates also donated $100,000 to the effort to keep gay marriage legal where it has already been recognized. The CEO of General Mills has also publicly spoken against Minnesota’s proposed amendment that would ban gay marriage.

Everyone has an opinion on gay marriage. They either think it is a sin or think it is a natural human right. Of course, opinions are like bowel movements – everybody has one but that does not mean others want to hear about it.

So I don’t understand why businesses feel the public wants their input. When I go into a shoe store, I don’t want to know what the owners, managers, employees, etc. feel about abortion. I just want shoes. When I go into a restaurant, I don’t want to know if they support traditional or gay marriage. I just want some food. I don’t frequent any business because of their beliefs or opinions; I am there for a service or product, and my concern is how the service or product is delivered.

Boycotting a business does not make you a better person. Sure, you might have a reason to puff up your chest and walk around telling people, “I’m a Christian so I don’t eat Oreos,” or “I support equality so I don’t eat Chick-fil-A,” but that does not mean you are special, righteous, or guaranteed a ticket to Heaven. It just means you feel like jumping on a soapbox in order to share your bowel move I mean, opinion.

Pro-gay or anti-gay, if you are going to determine where you take your business based on beliefs or opinions, you better learn how to live off of the land without modern conveniences. You will never find a company that is completely in line with your views. Even if you think the company big-wigs share your values, that does not mean they carry out their beliefs through action and, sometimes, values change.

For example, just a few short months ago, LifeWay – a chain of Christian stores owned by the SBC – pulled the film “The Blind Side” off of its shelves because the movie contained a racial slur. The stores had already been selling the movie, which follows a white family that adopted a black teenager, for about two years. After making its money, though, LifeWay followed the political route and pulled the movie because the SBC was set to elect its first black president, Fred Luter. The movie was Christian enough until SBC politics came into play, I guess.

As I told a few friends – some gay, some who support traditional marriage – “If you put Chick-fil-A in front of me, I’m going to eat it. If you put a rainbow-colored Oreo in front of me, I’m going to eat it.”

Then, after I eat those things, I’ll go out and actually do something that makes a difference instead of just yapping about what I think.

Short URL: http://www.jenningsdailynews.net/?p=12885

Posted by Graphic Designer 2 on Aug 1 2012. Filed under Editorial Columns. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.